Attracting public attention to specific information such as a commercial message typically involves a level of creative and communications expertise and knowledge of consumer psychology. The success or failure of a business endeavor often hinges on the public dissemination and follow-on awareness of a message related to the endeavor. If a message is compelling enough to warrant notice, the public is more likely to respond. However, should the information be conveyed in an uninteresting manner that fails to attract the attention of a consumer, expensive marketing campaigns may have little to no effect on consumer attitudes, behavior or other effects sought by the endeavor.
Traditional ways of conveying information or messages have evolved around conventional forms of mass media, namely print (newspapers and magazines), and broadcast (television and radio). Typically, a conventional advertising campaign consists of a small number of print ads and/or broadcast commercials directed at a target audience. Individuals exposed to the messages typically have varying cognitive responses based on the level of attention given the message, the saliency of the message, and the language and visual effects incorporated into the message. Mass distribution of the messages, whether by print and/or broadcast solicits the consumer attitudes, behavior or other effects sought by the endeavor to accomplish its objectives.
More recently, new forms of media have emerged. These relatively new technologies, including CD-ROMs, the Internet, and interactive television, enable individuals to interact with media, rather than passively experience one-way communication, characteristic of traditional print and broadcast. The most prominent of these new technologies is the Internet.
The Internet represents a vast computer network operating under the general framework of a client-server model. The network includes, generally, a plurality of interconnected computers or servers configured to store, transmit, and receive computer information. Designated servers host one or more "web sites" accessible electronically through a private Internet access provider or an on-line access provider. A unique address path or Uniform Resource Locator (URL) identifies individual web sites or pages within a web site. Internet users, or clients, utilizing software on personal computers ("client software") such as a web browser, may access a particular web site merely by selecting the particular URL or linking to that site from another site.
An important aspect of the Internet is the World Wide Web (WWW). The WWW comprises a collection of specialized servers on the Internet that recognize the Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP). Generally, HTTP enables access to a wide variety of server files, or "content" using a standard language known as Hypertext Markup Language (HTML). The files may be formatted with HTML to include graphics, sound, text files and multi-media objects, among others.
Methods of conveying information or messages to attract attention to products and services on the Internet often comprise "repackaged" versions of traditional mass media advertising. Internet advertising typically consists of a "banner" appearing in and/or with documents and other information selected by the user. The objective is for the user to click on the advertiser's banner, (known as "clicking-through"), to access the advertiser's information on the Internet. This marketing strategy resembles a method of attracting an individuals attention by the headline of a print advertisement and drawing the person into reading the body copy.
Generally, approximately fifty-percent of Internet advertising appears in web browsers and search engines. These Internet tools comprise software utilized by Internet users to access, through an Internet access provider, desired documents, streamed video and audio and information, otherwise referred to generally herein as "content." An example of one method is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,572,643 to Judson. The method includes displaying a web page having a link to a hypertext document (HTML file) located at a remote server. According to that method, following the user's selection of the link, the browser displays one or more messages during the time taken to download the selected document. Once the desired content appears, the message disappears.
While this method displays information or messages to a user, the message itself is typically unrelated to and detached from the downloaded content. Because the browser and/or search engine normally operate as initial steps the user must take to access desired entertainment information or other content, the user's interest in what appears on the screen displaying a browser or search engine is minimal as compared to the potential interest of the user when the message is shown during the display of the downloaded content itself. In other words, advertising presented on the Internet in this manner fails to benefit from an interesting content environment to stimulate the user's attention.
Another problem with conventional Internet advertising involves habits traditionally accepted by audiences in focusing attention on commercial messages. In the banner-to-click-through method of advertising, the user must make a voluntary, active effort to go beyond the information contained in the banner and view the complete information message of the advertiser located at the advertiser's site or other location on the Internet. This advertising approach falls outside the context of existing media behavior. By its nature, advertising is an intrusive rather than voluntary communication with a consumer.
Apart from the problems regarding the failure to adequately attract attention of an audience, conventional advertising models implemented on the Internet reflect relatively undesirable economic disadvantages as well. Within the current model, the cost per click-through to the advertiser is above levels that most consumer products and services marketers can afford to reach a prospective customer. This relatively high expense typically precludes entry into the Internet medium by manufacturers of consumer-packaged goods that would otherwise engage in advertising activities on the Internet. Accordingly, the majority of the advertising on the Internet involves messages for Internet and computer companies and large expenditure products such as automobiles.
Therefore, the need exists for a method and system of conveying information within user-selected content to increase the level of attention afforded by the information to the user. The need also exists for such a method and system to be economically viable to ensure availability to all marketed goods and services. The method and system of the present invention satisfies these needs.